Armed Forces A.C.
| dissolved = | ground = Academy Athletic Ground | capacity = 13,100 | owner = St. Gregory National Guard | chairman = | manager = | coach = | currentleague = League C | currentposition = | lastseason = | lastleaguec = League C | lastposition = 4th | current = | website = | firstgame = | largestwin = | worstdefeat = | topscorer = | fansgroup = | honours = | American = }} Armed Forces Athletic Club is a sports and athletic club based in Battleport, St. Gregory. The club is most well known for its association football team, which plays in League C of the St. Gregory Football Association. Prior to 2015-16, the club was exclusively for members of the St. Gregory National Guard and United States Armed Forces, however as of that season, non-military personnel are allowed to play for the football team. The team plays its home matches at the 13,100-seat Academy Athletic Ground, which is a multi-sport facility and also serves as home to the club's other sports teams. History Prior to the United States' takeover of St. Gregory in 1984, a variety of organized sports were played by the British Forces St. Gregory (the name given to the British Armed Forces units stationed in the territory) in Battleport and other locations. Football in particular proved to be popular, and British Forces St. Gregory teams would play amateur teams around St. Gregory and other British Overseas Territories whenever possible. Following the sale of the territory to the U.S. on July 6, 1984, the British Forces St. Gregory was disbanded and replaced with the St. Gregory National Guard. The impact the sports teams had made on the local community and St. Gregory as a whole led to a push for a more prominent foray into athletics. On March 14, 1987, Armed Forces Athletic Club was formed as the extramural recreational arm of the St. Gregory National Guard and its football team joined League B, the second and then-lowest tier of the SGFA, in time for the 1987-88 season, which began in October of that year. Dave Sellers was named as the club's first manager. Armed Forces were League B champions in their third season, 1989-90, and finished the following season in fourth place in League A, their highest finish in the top flight to date. They were winners of the 1991-92 SGFA Cup, defeating CGC Red Stars 2-0 in the final. This meant they qualified for the inaugural SGFA Shield, which they lost to defending League A champions Manorham by a score of 4-3. In 2016-17, the team's 30th year of professional competition, a bounce back to League B would result as Armed Forces lost just once (going 6-3-1) in the last 10 games of the season to storm into second place and earn automatic promotion to the 2017-18 League B season. However, they struggled all season, winning just five games and finishing 15th, missing out on a relegation playoff spot by just one point at the end of the season. Player eligibility Originally, all members of the club were required to serve in the St. Gregory National Guard or United States Armed Forces, meaning the club was not allowed to recruit players in the way other SGFA clubs do. This led to calls from fans and from the association to drop the restriction on non-military personnel to allow Armed Forces to become competitive against other teams in the league. On July 24, 2014, the club voted unanimously to allow non-military players beginning in the 2015-16 season. Colors, crest and nickname Kits Armed Forces' uniforms are currently supplied by Nike, who took over from adidas in 2014. The shirt sponsor is the National Guard. Players Current squad : As of July 1, 2019 Note: Players without a flag are from St. Gregory. Players with an asterisk (*) are from outside the United States or its territories, or have represented a non-U.S. territory at international level, but hold either citizenship or permanent residency in the U.S. and thus do not count towards the league cap on foreign players. Out on loan Former players :Further information: Category:Armed Forces A.C. players Managerial history :Further information: Category:Armed Forces A.C. managers Honors * League B :* Champions (1): 1989-90 * League C :* Champions (1): 1996-97 * SGFA Cup :* Winners (1): 1991-92 Category:Armed Forces A.C. Category:Club pages